Ask any Oklahoma or Texas football fan what Red River means, and immediately you'll see the same reaction, whether the person be five or fifty. Their face will light up, their eyebrows will raise, and they will mutter some form of the phrase, "Have to beat those bastards." Seriously. Go ahead, try it. I'll wait.

To the larger community though, Red River is a weekend spectacle almost unparalleled in sports. It is hosted on the grounds of the Texas State Fair, the smell of bacon crusted cinnamon rolls in the air. Big Tex welcomes folks to the game. Over 90,000 fans are split even down the middle, crimson on one side, burnt orange on the other.It is everything college sports, or even sports in general, should be.This year, as opposed to inserting my own opinions on the game though, I decided to do a little digging. No, I didn't go out and find the most pro-Oklahoma leaning website I could find, but instead went to the UT school newspaper. If this account is to be believed (and there's no reason to think it isn't), it should be a good weekend in Sooner Nation...Texas in danger of completing its worst four-year stretch in Red River Rivalry history By Christian Corona Posted on October 11, 2013 at 12:50 pm

The past three years against Oklahoma, particularly the last two, have been ugly for Texas.If the Longhorns are blown out again at the Cotton Bowl, it could mark their worst four-year stretch in Red River Rivalry history. They have lost their last three games against the Sooners by a total of 88 points – their worst three-year stretch in series history.Currently, Texas’ worst four-year stretch against its rivals to the north began in 2000, when it was demolished by Oklahoma, 63-14. The Sooners held a 42-0 lead 26 minutes into the game and cruised to seven-touchdown romp, sparking a five-game winning streak against the Longhorns.Oklahoma won the first four of those five games by a whopping 123 points, beating Texas, 14-3, in 2001, 35-24 in 2002 and 65-13 in 2003.

That 123-point span of utter domination is unmatched by the Longhorns in the rivalry’s 113-history. Texas’ best four-year stretch in the Red River Rivalry was from 1960-63 – a span that helped the Longhorns win a Red River Rivalry-best eight consecutive contests.The Longhorns topped the Sooners by a total of 69 points over those four years – 54 fewer than Oklahoma’s best four-year stretch. In fact, the Sooners have 11 better four-year stretches against Texas despite the fact that the Longhorns hold a 59-43-5 (.575) advantage all-time over the Sooners.If Texas, already with lopsided losses to BYU and Ole Miss, falls to unbeaten Oklahoma for the fourth straight time, it guarantees the Longhorns at least their fourth-worst four-year stretch in the Red River Rivalry.The Sooners not only are undefeated but have beaten a couple of good teams in Notre Dame and TCU to get there, even taking down the Fighting Irish in South Bend. They are favored by two touchdowns this weekend and for good reason.And if the Longhorns don’t cover that 14-point spread, it will guarantee them at least their second-worst four-year Red River Rivalry stretch ever.For Texas to make the last four years its worst against Oklahoma, however, it would have to get crushed by at least 36 points – which is not that far-fetched.The Longhorns, who have lost their last two games against the Sooners by an average of 40 points, will be without arguably their best offensive and defensive players in quarterback David Ash and linebacker Jordan Hicks. Almost no one outside the Texas locker room expects it to beat Oklahoma this Saturday. But if this year’s Red River Rivalry gets out of hand, though, it could mean more than another embarrassing loss for the Longhorns – it could mean their most embarrassing four-year stretch in Red River Rivalry history.